Otherside Tours

27/01/2020

Exploring the gorgeous trails above Kleinmond.
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06/11/2019

Watch this video https://youtu.be/Eg-ByS09xEE that will both fascinate you and send shivers down your spine. It not only depicts the breathtaking and rugged beauty of a corner of the country that we'd love to introduce you to, but also the shocking devastation that was caused by an unprecedented fire storm in January of this year.

Leave your vehicle at the at in and take a drive with us to the 'other side' on a memorable day outing... [email protected]

At the southern tip of Africa lies an area of such natural beauty and floral diversity as to be recognized as perhaps the world’s greatest biodiversity hot s...

05/11/2019

What better way to head off into the sunset than driving along one of the most magnificent coastal roads in the world?⁣
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Clarence Drive winds its way between mountains and sea for 21km, connecting the seaside hamlet of Rooiels with the naval town of Gordons Bay.⁣
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It’s one of the main features on all our Otherside Tours itineraries and makes the most stunning backdrop for holiday pics 😍⁣
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29/10/2019

Visiting the Cape and looking for a fresh wine route experience off the beaten track? Take the day off entirely and we'll drive you along ocean and mountains - where well kept secrets await!
@ Wildekrans Wine Estate

09/10/2019

Tranquility. Bird song. Breathtaking vistas. Still recovering from being scorched by a vicious fire in January 2019, the Harold Porter National Botanical Garden at Betty's Bay is nevertheless always a haven of beauty. Want to break away from the beaten tracks of the usual tourist attractions for a day? Otherside Tours would love to show you some of the treasuress in the Kogelberg Biosphere Reserve!
We drive you there - just contact us via othersidetours.co.za!

07/10/2019

Did you know 🤔: African penguins are also known as Jackass penguins?
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This colloquial name was inspired by the donkey-like braying sounds they use to communicate with one another! ⁣
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Want to meet one of these tuxedo-wearing cuties in person? ⁣🐧
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Hop on board the Otherside Tours bus for a trip to Stony Point Nature Reserve in Betty's Bay. It’s home to one of the largest successful breeding colonies of African Penguin in the world! ⁣
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Read more about it on the CapeNature website: https://www.capenature.co.za/reserves/stony-point-nature-reserve/

04/10/2019

Is the Camino de Santiago calling your name? But you simply can’t set aside a big chunk of time to go?⁣⁣
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We highly recommend the Portuguese Way! ⁣⁣
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Starting in Porto, Portugal, it's just less than 250km's walk to Santiago de Compostela. Which you could easily complete in anything between 10 days and two weeks! ⁣⁣
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If you need some help planning, Otherside Tours is happy to assist. ⁣
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Get in touch for more information about our Camino Portugués planning & consultation package options for South African peregrinos and peregrinas!

02/10/2019

02/10/2019

Spring is in the air! And what better way to celebrate the new season than spending a whole day admiring all the new shoots and blooms?

On 26 & 27 October and 2 & 3 November, Experience Elgin will be welcoming visitors for the annual Elgin Open Gardens event.

You will get the chance to explore 8 private gardens and 5 lifestyle venues with gardens.

There will also be delicious tea & cake, wine tasting, plant sales and loads of beauty to enjoy!

Need a ride? Hop on board with Otherside Tours - get in touch with us today for a quote!

09/07/2019

One of the stunning features of our day outings into the Kogelberg Biosphere Reserve is the Harold Porter National Botanical Garden in Betty's Bay, where you will experience not only the rich beauty of indigenous fynbos, but also examples of plant species from a variety of other biomes and habitats.

At the entrance to the garden you can usually see a colourful display of a multitude of flowering species (see photograph). And the other photo shows one of the garden's resident pollinators at work on a water lily!

Although the garden was affected and partially damaged by the devastating fire that raged through it on 11 January 2019, large parts of it are intact and as beautiful as ever. The loving hands of expertly staff are constantly nursing and nurturing it back to its full excellence and glory...
The Harold Porter is a sister garden of the famous Kirstenbosch Garden in Cape Town, which this year brought home a gold medal from the Chelsea Flower Show for the 37th time! The flowers used in this year's exhibition were again the stunning indigenous blooms that are found in both gardens.

29/06/2019

These favourite little flightless fellows (and gals!) like to explore further afield at the end of the day, once doting humans and their camera lenses have departed. Whilst some of them just chill by the waterside, others are steadily waddling up the pathway - seemingly just to check out the restaurant on site (unfortunately for them, after hours); but actually aiming for the exit from the reserve. There's always a bunch that gets an obvious thrill from overstepping the boundaries - and from checking out the 'housing' options in the shrubbery beyond their colony!

19/06/2019

https://www.instagram.com/p/By2IJJyBO1O/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

31/05/2019

Art works of some delicate and beautiful species too be found in the Harold Porter National Botanical Garden in Betty's Bay. The artist is the talented Ebrahim Hull, who is also an employee of SANBI. @ Betty's Bay, Western Cape

29/05/2019

Breathtaking Clarence Drive, all the way from Gordons Bay, through Rooiels, Pringle Bay and Betty's Bay to Kleinmond. And a beautiful view of the Kogelbaai beach and surf spot at low tide.

30/04/2019

Nature is fascinating wherever you go... and if you have not yet been on the 'other side' of the bay from the Cape Peninsula, you should perhaps consider allowing us to take you on a most scenic and rewarding drive into the which embraces the heart of the and so much more - like the at Betty's Bay.
A day outing will no doubt fill up your senses and expand your horizons!

30/04/2019

What do African penguins eat - and how do they find their meals?

They may forage on their own or in small groups. Their diet differs from region to region but their primary diet includes small pelagic fish such as pilchards, anchovies, horse mackerel and herring. African penguins may supplement their diet with squid and small crustaceans in areas where there is a decrease in fish abundance because of commercial fishing. They usually forage at depths of

26/04/2019

Another excerpt from the article on African penguins by Ntefeleng Lesego Seiphetlho, written under the banner of the National Botanical Garden. This garden is in Betty's Bay - as is the world-famous penguin colony at Stony Point, where you can get real close to these amazing little creatures.

DISTRIBUTION
The African penguin is the only penguin species that occurs off the coast of Africa, and it is endemic to the coast of southern Africa, from Hollams Bird Island, near the central Namibian coast, to Algoa Bay off the coast of the Eastern Cape, South Africa. They occur mostly on islands along the coast, but there are two populations on the mainland in South Africa, at Betty’s Bay and Boulders Beach in the Cape Town area.

Habitat
African penguins are found along coastal areas and offshore islands. Their preferred habitats are flat sandy areas with sparse or abundant vegetation growth, or steep, rocky sites with sparse vegetation.

26/04/2019

This is what an autumn sunset over False Bay looks like on the R44 (Clarence Drive) between Gordons Bay and Rooiels. And it's always breathtakingly different! You can experience this and more with . [email protected]

11/04/2019

More about African penguins (continued from the previous excerpt):

Getting around

African penguins are very clumsy on land, waddling upright with flippers held away from the body as if they are drunk. They are, however, highly specialised for a life at sea and they are efficient swimmers that can reach speeds of up to 20 km/h, cruise at 4–7 km/h and dive down to 130 m.

Communicating

African penguins communicate by means of vocalisation and displays. Vocalisation includes loud, donkey-like braying noises as well as barking and growling. Chicks can produce a whistling ‘peep’ to request food and a hissing sound. Aggressive displays include an individual pointing its bill directly at another, pecking, bill-slapping and beating one another with flippers. Comfort behaviours include preening of feathers and rubbing and scratching of the head.

11/04/2019

So, if you would like a close encounter with the cuteness of African penguins, can make it happen for you - on an enjoyable and scenic day outing from the regions of and surrounds.
The outing would typically kick off with a visit to the at (Somerset West), after which the scenic drive along the coast to at , where the penguin colony finds itself.

10/04/2019

Enjoy a further excerpt from an article (on 's website) by ...

How to recognize the African penguin:

African penguins are flightless aquatic birds with reduced wings that are modified to form efficient flippers for swimming and they have heavy bones to enable them to dive. The feathers in adults are specialised to form a thick coat of overlapping layers that assists with waterproofing, wind resistance and insulation. The dorsal or back part of the body part is black and the belly is white. The white belly has a thick black stripe curving across the top of the chest, and down the flanks towards the legs. African penguins have black webbed feet and a black facial mask with distinctive pink patches of skin above the eyes. Each African penguin has a unique and distinct pattern of black spots on the white chest that can be used to distinguish individuals from one another. The African penguin has a black bill and shortened tail.
Males and females have the same plumage, making it difficult to differentiate between sexes. However, males can be distinguished from females by a slightly bigger and broader bill. Adults weigh on average 2.2–3.5 kg and are 60– 70 cm in height. Juveniles differ from adults in having blue-grey plumage with no white facial markings and no bold, delineated markings. They have dark upper-parts lacking both spots and band on the chest.

08/04/2019

at is world famous for its colony of - an endangered species. They are also quaint, endearing, resourceful, resilient and so much more!
Read more in this first of several excerpts from an article by Ntefeleng Lesego Seiphetlho, appearing on the website of (the South African National Biodiversity Institute):

"Derivation of scientific name

The genus name Spheniscus is derived from the ancient Greek word sphen, which means wedge, referring to the streamlined body shape of the African penguin. The species name demersus is Latin meaning plunging or sinking, referring to its diving behaviour. The common name ’jackass’ refers to its call, which sounds similar to that of a donkey, even though most other penguins produce a similar sound.

The African penguin is endemic to coastal areas of southern Africa. It is a charismatic species that is known for its loud donkey-like braying noises, distinctive black and white plumage and large breeding colonies. It is a flightless bird that is well adapted to life at sea and land. The body is streamlined with modified wings that resemble flippers, which enable them to be efficient swimmers, and a thick coat with overlapping feathers that assists with waterproofing, wind resistance and insulation.

The African penguin has experienced rapid population declines over the past century as a result of overexploitation for food, habitat modification of nesting sites, oil spillages, and competition for food resources with commercial fishing. As a result it is classified as Endangered by the IUCN Red List and it is listed under Appendix II of the CITES (Convention on International Trade of Endangered Species). In South Africa, it is further listed as a protected species under the National Environment Management: Biodiversity Act (No. 10 of 2004)."

03/04/2018

One of six bird species that are endemic to the fynbos regions of the Western Cape, the Cape Rockjumper (here photographed at Rooiels during the Easter weekend), is one of them. Occurring in such a limited habitat, it attracts birding enthusiasts from far and wide, who come to the area armed with appropriate equipment!
These shots were captured by Imar Krige

05/03/2018

We're all about luring you, the occasional or first-time overseas visitor, beyond the borders of the Cape Town metropole to the 'other side'. Outing packages typically include the breathtaking scenic drive between and during which - depending on time of day and season - you may well spot whales or be able to photograph a sunset over the Atlantic Ocean; the colony at , the botanical garden, the Kogelberg Nature Reserve, and even if you would so wish.

Besides - it's also worth taking note of the fact that the is celebrating it's 20th year of existence in 2018. And with you will be heading right into the heart of this World Heritage Site.

05/03/2018

A handful of random impressions from the collection of Otherside Tours

23/01/2018

This video is about community fishers engaging in marine research in the Kogelberg Region.